Can-closing machine



May 28, 1929.

J. M. HOTHERSALL 1,714,875

CAN CLOSING MACHINE Filed Sept. 14, 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTQR Z'rLWL-AQM TTORNEYS y 1929. J. M. HOTHERSALL 1. 14.875

CAN CLOSING MACHINE Filed Sept. 14, 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 I W Z mum-15mm HI III-Ill W ATTORNEYS May 28, 1929. J. M. HOTHERSALL CAN CLOS ING MACHINE Filed Sept. 14, 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 I l I I r I 4 ATTORNEYS y 8. 1929. J. M. HOTHERSALL ,714,875

CAN CLOSING MACHINE Filed Sept. 14, 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Patented May 28, 1929.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN M. HOTHERSALL, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO AMERICAN CAN COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A

CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY. e

' CAN CLOSING MACHINE.

. Application tiled September 14, 1925. Serial No. 56,272.

My invention relates to can closing machines, and has for its object the provision of a double seamer adapted to close metal containers in which the seam is formed intermediate the ends of the container.

In the ordinary type of double seaming machine, a chuck is provided to enter a counter-sunk portion of the can end and back up a vertical wall formed just inwardly from the attaching flange, the can body and cover thus being held in proper relationship during the seaming operation. This seaming'operation may be performed by either of two well known types of scaming mechanism, one in which the container is held in fixed position and the seaming mechanism rotated thereabout, and the other in which the seaming mechanism isstationmy and the can is rotated in contact with seaming rollers which are presented in proper timed relationship. The machine of my invention is ,of the latter type and differs from the ordinary seaming machine in that provision is made for attaching acover which .is not of the counter-sunk type but of sllclrshtlpe that the attaching flange is disposedbeneath thetop of the cover. The inventio 'i resides in the COXlStlllCtiOIl and combination of elements whereby the machine is adapted to this purpose.

Numerous other objects and advantages of the invention ivillbe a parent as it is better understood from the fbllowing description, which, taken inconnection with the accompan ying drawings, discloses a preferred embodiment thereof.

Iteferringtothe drawings,

' Figure 1 a front elevation machine in which my invention is embodied, a can being shown" in seaming position and parts tliereof broken away to better illustrate the seaming mechanism;

Fig. 2v is a side elevation of said machine;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the seaming roller carrier and the handle by which the same is moved to arrange-the rollers in contact with the work;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional view of the seaming mechanism, taken substantially on the section line 4-4 in of a seaming Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a sectional detail of the first operation seaming roll; and

Figs. 6, 7 and 8 are enlarged sectional and clevational views showing the form of the can scam during the successive seaming op:

erations, said views illustrating, respectively, the first, second and third operation rollers.

A can of the type upon which the machine of my invention is adapted to o erate is shown in Figs. 1 and 4 of the rawings. Said can comprises a cylindrical body 11, having a bottom end 12 and an upper end or cover 13, which has a central opening 14 in the top thereof adapted to be closed by means of a suitable friction plu closure (not shown). It is contemplated that the lower end, or bottom member 12 may be applied by means of another double seaming machine of my invention, which is disclosed and claimed in a co-pendim application of even date hcrewith, bearing Serial No. 56,271. It will be observed that the container consisting of these parts is of drum shape and the seams by which the end members are attached to the body are disposed intermediate the ends of said container. The upper end or top 'member 13 is adapted to be applied by the machine of the present invention, which will now be described.

Referring first to Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings, the reference character .15 indicates a standard or column, arising from a base 16 and having journaled in the upper part thereof a horizontal drive shaft 17, carrying a belt pulley 18 adapted to be driven from any suitable source of power. Said shaft carries at. its inner end a bevel gear 19, meshing with a like gear 21 on a vertical shaft 22 journalled in bearings 23and 24 formed in forward extensions 25 and 26 of the standard or column 15. Said shaft has a. gear 27 secured to the lower end thereof and disposed within a housing 28 formed beneath the bearing 24, said gear meshing with an internal ear ring 29 mounted for rotation in said housing 28 (see Fig. 4). Said ear ring is formed with a shoulder 31 an is adapted to be held in place by an annular plate 32 secured to the bottom of said housing 28. Said gear 27 is formed with a downward hub extension 33, into which is threaded a stud 34 projecting upwardly from a backing disk 35 adapted to be disposed within the container to back up the seam during the seaming operation.

Said gear ring 29 has an inwardly extending flange 36, to which a-chnck'37 is secured by means of screws 38, the loweredge of said chuck being shaped to clamp against the top of the cover member 13 to hold a double seam,

the same firmly upon the can body during the seaming operation. It will thus be apparent that rotation of the shaft 22 in turn rotates the chuck '37 and the backing up disk 35, thereby rotating the can at a prop- '43 extended outwardly from the column 15,

said rod. being slotted at the .lower end thereof, as indicated at 44, and adapted to receive the forward end- 45 of' a lever; 46, which is pivoted at 47 to a downward extension 48 of the bracket 43. The opposite end of said lever 46 is pivoted at 49' to an adjustable bracket 51 on avertical rod 52 pivoted standing lug 55 at its lower endat 53 to a foot lever .54, whichis pivoted at its rear end -to' an upon the base 16. The forward end of said lever has afoot pedal 56 formed thereon and guides. 57 are provide upon the base 16 intermediate the endsof said lever to hold the same in centered position. Said lever is normally held in raised position by means of a-spring 58 securedat its lower end to the lever rearwardly of the connection 53 with the rod 52,;the upper end of said spring engaging a ho'ok 59 extending outwardly from the column15. It will be apparent that de ression of said lever against the tension-o the spring. 58 will lift the support plate 39. and raise the can to seaming position. 7 The cans may be positioned 'upon the support plate 39 by hand, or anypreferred man ner, and at this time have the bottom ends secured thereto and thecovers 13 placed loosely thereon, see dotted position in 'Fig. 6 of part 116. .The seaming mechanism at this time is retracted and the bands positioned or manipulated in such manner as to cause the disk 35 to enter .the opening 14 and be arranged inlthe position shown in. said Fig.- 4. With the .can' parts .Jclamped be-' tween the chuck 37 and the=supportplate and the backingdi'sk 35 arranged incontact with the cover and. body "at the seaming line it will be a parent that-rotation. of

sai chuck and 'dlSk in unison will rotate the can body and support plate .therewith and the seaming-mechanism is-' then presented in proper relationship vto cooperate with the rotating can to form-the seam.

Said seaming mechanism, as shown, com- .prises-a turret 61 -(se'e-Figs. l, 3 and 4),

which, in the present instance, carries two sets of seaming rollers, each set comprisin rollers for three different operations an guideways 76 in .operation, the.

the sets being duplicated merely for mechanical convenience, itbeing understood that only one set of rollers operates upon a single.

can. The turret 61 is adapted to be moved horizontally to bring the same into s'eaming position and to be rotated to successively present the different operation rollers, in

manner which will be presently described.

Said turret and associated parts are carried by a slidin block 62, mounted upon a guideway 63 and adapted to be adjusted for cans of different diameter by means of a threaded rod 64 provided with a handle 65. A hand screw 66 'isprovided for vertical adjustment.

.The turretfilis mounted upon avertical shaft 67 and comprises an upper part ,68 and a lower part 69 between which second operation.seaming'lrollers 71 are disposed, said rollers'being' mounted upon-studs. 72., held in place byset screws 73. Said shaft 67 extendsfthrough a hub portion 74 of a sliding 3 frame 75,

he block 62. Said shaft carries at itsllower end a disk 77, which has an upward sleeve extension 78 upon which is loosely mounted a gear' 79, having a ratchet connection with the top of said disk,

d said'connection being provided by teeth 8i on-the bottom offthe gear'xand a springpressed dog 82 extending upwardly from the top of said disk .77, said dog beingnormally held extended by means ofa spring83 held within said disk by means of a plug screw, 84.

The seaming ;mechanism just described is adapted to be advanced to operative position bymeans of'a handle 85 (see Fig. 3), which is pivoted at v86 to the frame 'and is of bell crank formation, one arm 87 thereof being pivotally connected at 88 to an arm 89, which is pivoted at '91' to the top of the block'62. By'turning'the handle on the pivot 86 the distance-between the points 86 and 91 is'shortenedor lengthened and the frame 7 5 and mechanism carried thereby shifted laterally, in manner which will be readily understood; One of the first operamovable horizontally in tion rollers, indicated by' the reference character 92 in Fig. 3, is first brought into contact with the'seam parts of the :formsan operation which will presently be described. Upon completion of the first frame .75. is retracted and again advancedto bring one of the second can and per--' operation rollers 71-into operative position,

the"turret bei. g -r tated throu h an arc of 609, or the distance between sai roller, upon each backward sliding movement of said frame,' -th e rotation being 7 engagement of the gear- 9 with a rack 94 secured to the block 62. The teeth 81 and the ratchet dog 82 are formed in such manner that the are locked together during the backward sliding said do being adapted to slide over said teeth w en the movement is in the opposite effected through i movement of the frame 75 102 upon a top extension 103 direction, this being permitted by compression of the spring 83. Upon completion of the second operation, said frame 75 is again retracted and advanced to bring one of the third operation rollers 93 into action, the turret 61 being rotated as hereinbeforc described to present this roller. A centering button 95 is provided in the frame 75 and adapted to be held in appropriate depressions 96 in the shaft 67 to hold the latter in appropriate position, said button being under the tension of a spring 97 held in place by means of a'screw 98 in said frame 75. It will be understood that the gear 79 is also rotated upon the forward movement of said frame75, but, by reason of the form of theratchet teeth 81 and the spring mounting of the dog 82,. the latter is depressed by and snaps over said teeth, so that the rotation of said gear 79 is not imparted to the disk 77 or the turret 61.

The parts mounted upon the shaft 67 are held in assembled relationship by means of upper and lower washers 99 and 101, a nut of said shaft holding the washer 99 in place and a screw 104 being provided at the lower end of said shaft for retaining the washer 101.

Referring now particularly to Figs. 5 to 8, inclusive, the construction and operation of the seaming rollers will be described. The first operation seaming roller, shown in detail in Fig. 5 and Fig. 6, comprises an upper section 105 and a lower section 106 upon which said upper section is slidably mounted, both said sections being rotatably mounted about a fixed stud 107 extending through the turret 61, which is provided with a suitable recess 108 to receive said roller parts and associated mechanism. The upper roller section 105 has relatively large central bores 109 and 111 to permit sliding movement of the same upon the section 106 and a block 112, under the tension of a spring 113, which is provided in said recess 108 to normallyhold said roller section 105 in its advanced position. When the first o eration rollers are brought into action, the liody flange 114 is in horizontal position, as shown in Figs. 4 and 6, and the cover flange comprises a substantially horizontal portion 115 and a substantially vertical portion 116 shown in dotted lines in said Fig. 6. The roller section 105, being in advance of the section 106, first comes into contact with a wall portion 117 on the cover and remains in this position while the turret 61 continues to advance, the

lower roller section at this time advancing from the dotted line position, indicated at 118 in the drawings, to the full line position, indicated at 119, and bending the flange portion 116 from the dotted line position to the full line dposition of Fig. 6; This action is permitte by the spring mounting of diagrammatically in.

upper roller section 105, being compressed during the advancing movement of the turret after said roller section has been brought into contact with the container cover. It will be understood that duringthis operation, the can is firmly held between the support plate 41 and the chuck 37 and the inside of the seam is backed up by the disk 35, the can and said disk being rotatedso that the entireflange 116 is acted upon by said roller and brought to the hook formation shown in full lines in Fig. 6.

After the first operation has been completed, the frame is retracted, in the manner previously explained, and during the backward movement, the turret' 61 is rotated and the seaming mechanism shifted to bring one of the second operation roller unitsinto operative position, this unit being shown in Figs. 4 and 7 of the drawings. Said unit comprises the roller 71 previously described and an auxiliary roller 121, which is mounted on a stud 122 in a sliding block 123 mounted in a guideway 124 in a fixed block 125. Said sliding block 123 is normally held in down. or retracted, position by means of a spring 126 disposed in said guideway and adapted to the upper end 127 thereof and a pin 128 carried by said sliding block 123. The disk 77 carries rollers 129 at opposite sides thereof and as said disk is advanced, one of said rollers is brought into contact with the lower beveled end 131 of said block 123, the block being thus lifted and the roller 121 brought. to position to co-act with the roller 71 in bcnding the seam to the downwardly inclined position shown in Fig. 7. After the can has been sufliciently rotated to perform this second operation, the frame 75 is again re traeted and the turret 61 rotated to again shift the seaming mechanism and present one of the third operation rollers 93, which is diagrammatically shown in Fig. 8. This roller is provided with a central groove 132, adapted to receive the partially formed seam, which latter, upon advancing movement of said roller, is bent downwardly against the can body, as shown in Fig. 8. Upon completion of this operation, the frame 75 is again retracted and the can, with the cover seamed thereto, may then be removed by lowering the support plate 39, the can being manually disengaged from the disk 35. Another can may then be positioned and the cycle of operations repeated. By

v.the spring 113 be compressed between be made in the form, construction and arrangementof the parts without departing from the spirit and scop of the invention, or sacrificing all of its ma ial advantages, the form hereinbefore described being merely a preferred embodiment thereof.

I claim: a

1. A can closing machine, comprising a can support, means for-clamping the can'and cover to be united thereto to said support, and seaming mechanism. having a sets of seaming rollers each set servin for the closing of a can movable into an out of operative relation with said can to 'perform successive seaming operations in forminga seam intermediate t e en'ds'of the can, the seaming mechanism and can'having relative rotary movement, and means for otating the sets of seaming rollers from oneset to anotherset in one direction.

2'. A can closing machine, comprising a can support, means for clamping the can and cover to be united thereto to said support, seaming mechanism movable intoand out of operative relation-with said can t6 perform successive seaming operations in forming a seam intermediate the ends of the can, means for rotating the can with the "seaming mechanism in o erativerelatioxi for shi ting the seaming thereto and means mechanism when it 1s moved out of opera.-

- tion. I

3. A can closing machine," comprising a can support, means for clamping the can and cover to be united thereto to said supv J port, seaming mechanism movable lnto and out of operative relation with said canto perform successive seaming operations in orming a seam intermediate the ends of the can, means for shifting the seaming mechanism by its movement away from the can, means for rotating the can with the seaming mechanism in operative relation thereto, and means for backing up the seam during the seaming operations. i

4. A can closing machine, comprising a can support, means for clamping the can and cover to be united thereto to said support, seaming mechanism movable into and outof operative relation with said can to perform successive seaming operations in forming a seam intermediate the ends of the can, means for shifting the seaming mech Y anismby its movementaway from the can,

meansfor rotating the-can with the seaming mechanism in operative relation thereto,'an

' above said support, said sup .being relatively movable to 0 amp a can and means disposed within the can for backingup the seam during the seaming operations 7 5. A canclosmg machineyconiprising a can support, a rotatable chuck positioned ort and chucksitioned end member therebetwen, a backingmemberadapted to be inserted through 'an opening in the end member and arplurality of.

operable means for movin an opening in the end member and arranged to backup the seam during the seaming operation, saidbacking member being rotatable in unison with said chuck, gears for rotating said backing member andseaming mechanism movable into and out of operative'relation to the can to form a seam intermediate the ends thereof joining an end member to the can body;

, 7; A can closing machine, comprising a can support, means for clamping an end member upon a can positioned upon said support, said end member and the can body having'flanges adapted to be interfolded in a double-seam intermediate the ends of the completedv can, seaming mechanism including a turret-having a plurality of different operation rollers mounted therein, manually operable means. for -moving said turret into and out of'operative relation with the can,-and mechanism for giving the turret a step by steprotation in one direction as it is withdrawn from the can.

' 8. A can closing machine, comprising a can; support, means for clamping an end member upon a can positioned upon said support, said end member'and the can body having flanges adapted to be interfolded in a double seam intermediate the ends of the completed can, seaming mechanism including a turret havinga lurality of sets of different operation rol ers mounted therein, each. set serving for the closing of a canby successive operations, and manually operable means for moving said turret into and out of operative relationwith the can, said last-mentioned means being adapted also to rotate said turret intermittently in one direction'to successivelypresent the different operationrollers for action upon the seam.

9. A can closing machine, comprising a can support, means for clamping an end member upon a can positioned u on said su port, said end member and t e can b havin flanges adapted tobainterfolded'in and mechanism including a ratchet for automatically rotating said turret during the above-mentioned action thereof to successively present the different operation rollers to position to be advanced into operative relation with the can.

10. A can closing machine, comprising a can support, means for clamping an end member upon a can positioned upon said support, said end member and the can body having flanges adapted to be interfolded in a double seam intermediate the ends of the completed can, seaming mechanism including a pair of cooperating seaming rollers, one thereof being slidably mounted and normally spring-held out of o erative relation, said mechanism also inclu ing a laterally movable support for the other roller, and means movable with said support for moving said first-mentioned roller into operative position.

11. A can closing machine, comprising a can support, means for clamping an end member upon a can positioned upon said support, said end member and the can body having flanges adapted to be interfolded in a double seam intermediate the ends of the completed can, seamin mechanism movable into and out of operative relation to the can and including a roller comprising relatively movable parts, one of which is adapted to yield after being brought into contact with the can and during the continued advancing movement of the other.

12. A can closing machine, having in combination rotary can chucks for clamping be tween them the can and cover to be united, a plurality of seaming rolls and a carrier for said rolls which is movable toward and from the rotating can, and means for turning the roll carrier when it is operated by the movement of the carrier away from the can, to bring the seaming rolls in proper succession opposite the can so as to engage the latter when the carrier is again moved toward the can.

13. A. can closing machine having in combination, rotary chucks between which the parts of the can are clamped, a plurality of seaming rolls for operating successively on the exterior of the can at the seam to be produced therein, a backing-up roller mount ed within the can to operate on its inner surface opposite to said seaming rolls, and means for positively rotating said backingup roller independently of the friction thereon of the can body.

JOHN M. HOTHERSALL. 

